Articles Tagged With:
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Pre-existing Health Determines Quality of Life, Physical Symptoms After ICU Discharge
The authors of this nested cohort study within a randomized, controlled trial of ICU survivors requiring > 48 hours of mechanical ventilation found that pre-existing comorbidity was the main determinant of long-term health-related quality of life.
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Hospital Ice Machines Contaminated With Bacteria
Requiring staff to cleanse their hands with alcohol hand gel prior to using an ice machine and directing housekeeping personnel to perform more frequent machine cleaning may improve situation.
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Mefloquine: Still Effective and Still Safe for Malaria Chemoprophylaxis
Mefloquine is known as an effective agent for malaria chemoprophylaxis. However, concerns about serious adverse effects have limited its use. Now, a careful review of data suggests that fatal outcomes related to mefloquine prophylaxis are very rare.
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Infectious Disease Alert Updates
Probiotics and Lactobacillemia; The Last Poliovirus Challenge
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Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis Due to Candida
Prosthetic valve endocarditis due to Candida spp. is associated with high mortality, but is curable — or at least controllable.
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HANDOC: Some Guidance on When to Order Echocardiograms in Patients With Streptococcal Bacteremia
Non-β-hemolytic streptococci (NBHS) are the most common cause of infective endocarditis. In this retrospective study of 399 patients with NBHS bacteremia, 26 patients had endocarditis. HANDOC score (heart murmur, aetiology by specific species of NBHS, number of positive blood cultures, duration of symptoms, only one species in blood culture, and community-acquired infection) was predictive of endocarditis vs. non-endocarditis bacteremia.
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Tuberculosis in the United States in 2017
While the incidence of tuberculosis in the United States in 2017 was the lowest ever recorded, the current rate of decline would be required to almost double to reach the goal of elimination of the disease in this country by the year 2100.
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Extended-pulsed Dosing of Fidaxomicin vs. Standard-dose Vancomycin for Clostridium difficile Infection
A randomized, controlled, open-label clinical trial conducted at 86 European hospitals that included adults aged 60 years or older found that extended-pulsed dosing of fidaxomicin was superior to standard-dose vancomycin for sustained cure of Clostridium difficile infection and resulted in fewer disease recurrences.
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Dealing With Multidrug-resistant Organisms on a National Level: CDC Successes and Problems on the Horizon
CDC efforts, implemented at the local level, have been associated with a modest reduction in the incidences of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae with an ESBL phenotype and a more dramatic reduction in carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae.
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Planes, Pathogens, and Passengers: Infection Risk During Commercial Air Travel
Although air travel has been linked to transmission of respiratory infections, the actual risk of becoming infected during air travel is low. The risk is greatest, though, when seated within about two seats/rows of a contagious individual. Walking around the cabin increases risk.